Fujio Shido facts for kids

Fujio Shido (志度 藤雄, Shido Fujio, 1901–1986) was a Japanese chef. He was very important in bringing French cuisine to Japan.

When he was in his early 20s, he secretly boarded a ship going to London. He was caught and sent back. But on his way back to Japan, he escaped the ship in Marseilles. He then made his way to Paris. There, he studied cooking at the famous Le Cordon Bleu school.

After World War II, he went back to Japan. He opened many restaurants. In the mid-1950s, he even cooked for the Prime Minister of Japan. Shido was a pioneer of French cooking in Japan. He is known for creating fond de veau curry and soupe Paris soir. His curry dish made him very famous in Japan. He also wrote books about Japanese and French cooking. One of his books inspired Iron Chef French Hiroyuki Sakai, who later studied with Shido for three years.

Early Life and European Adventures

Fujio Shido was born in 1901. He was the youngest of eight children. Soon after he was born, he was adopted by Shido Shigetarō. After finishing grade school, he started working for his uncle. This was at a Western-style food restaurant called Seiyōken (精養軒) in Kōbe. He lived above the restaurant.

After working there for more than four years, his friends and mentors encouraged him. So, in 1921, he took a job at Manyōken (萬葉軒). There, he worked under Kanematsu Imagawa (今川 金松), who was a top student of chef Tokuzō Akiyama.

Imagawa's cooking style inspired Shido. He decided to become a ship's cook on the Japanese ship Katori Maru (香取丸). He traveled from Kōbe to Shanghai and then to Sydney. He then secretly boarded another ship going to London. He was not impressed by the food at The Piccadilly Hotel there. He was arrested in England for entering the country illegally. So, he was sent back to Japan.

When his ship stopped in Marseilles, Shido jumped off. He made his way to Paris. In Paris, he found a job at a Japanese restaurant. At the same time, he studied at the Le Cordon Bleu cooking school. He kept learning about French cooking at other famous restaurants. These included Le Meurice and the Hôtel de Crillon.

Return to Japan and Famous Dishes

Fujio Shido became good friends with two important people: Mamoru Shigemitsu, a diplomat, and Shigeru Yoshida. From 1941 until the end of World War II, Shido was the head chef at the Japanese embassy in London.

After the war, he returned to Japan. He opened his own restaurant called Nichido Grill (日動グリル, Nichidou Guriru). There, he created fond de veau curry (フォン・ド・ヴォー・カレー, fon do vō karē). This was a special stock that could be used as a base for making curry. This dish made him famous very quickly. Around that time, he also created soupe Paris soir (パリ・ソワール, Pari sowāru). This was a chilled, jelly-like soup. It was made by pouring layers of consommé and vichyssoise into a cold glass. His friend Yoshida then encouraged him to move to Tokyo.

In 1956, Shido opened another restaurant called Hana no Ki (花の木). He was the head chef there. Later, he became the cook at the official home of the Prime Minister of Japan. After that, he opened and was head chef at Maison Shido (メイゾン・シド, Meizon Shido). Then he opened Four Seasons (四季, Shiki). The wedding party for famous people Hideko Takamine and Zenzo Matsuyama was held at Maison Shido.

Legacy and Awards

Iron Chef French Hiroyuki Sakai said that Shido's French cooking was "at the highest level." Sakai studied with Shido for three years at the Shiki restaurant. Sakai was 19 years old when he started. Sakai says that Shido's book, As a Cook, greatly influenced his own learning and career.

Fujio Shido received the Culinary Academy of France Award in 1972. He is seen as a true pioneer of French cooking in Japan. He passed away in 1986.

On September 30, 2007, he was featured on the Nippon TV show Chefs That Changed the World (世界を変えた料理人, Sekai o Kaeta Ryourinin). He was on the show with Nobuo Murakami and Asako Tsujimura.